Goyal To Visit US For Trade Talks This Month, Says US Ambassador Gor

(MENAFN- Live Mint) NEW DELHI: Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal will visit the US at the end of this month for talks on the proposed trade agreement between the world's largest economy and the world's most populous nation, US ambassador to India Sergio Gor said on Wednesday.

Trade between the two countries must deepen, Gor said at an event organized by the Automotive Component Manufacturers' Association of India (Acma) in the national capital.

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“Our two governments are working closely together to build a trade relationship that is fair, reciprocal, and mutually beneficial. And I don't know if this is public yet, but minister Goyal will be travelling at the end of the month to the United States to continue engaging as we host the G20 talks,” Gor said.

India and the US launched negotiations for a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in February 2025, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump formally announced the talks. The deal has yet to be concluded. Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at $140.76 billion in fiscal year 2026 (FY26).

Gor said the US and India are also working together across a range of areas, including critical minerals and technology.“Our two nations are partnering on virtually everything under the roof. Just this year, our two countries signed the Pax Silica declaration, a landmark step towards a pro-innovation regulatory framework. This declaration will make it easier for Indian and American companies to invest across borders and power the next generation of entrepreneurs,” he said.

India was among the first countries invited to join the US-led Pax Silica initiative, Gor said.“It is because we trust India, it is because we want to work with India,” he added.

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Goyal, speaking at the same event, said India is actively participating in the US-led Pax Silica initiative on critical mineral supply chains. He said the two countries are committed to preventing any single nation from dominating those supply chains.

“We are talking to some countries with whom we will be having collaborations and partnerships to promote critical minerals being processed and developed for our requirements. With the US also, we are a member of their critical minerals partnership, we are active in the Pax Silica grouping that they have created,” Goyal said on the sidelines of the event.

India is also in talks with trade partners in the UK and European Union to build more resilient supply chains, Goyal said.

Pax Silica, a Washington-led strategic initiative aimed at securing the global silicon supply chain in the era of artificial intelligence (AI), follows earlier US-led efforts such as the 2022 Mineral Security Partnership and the more recent Quad Critical Minerals Initiative.

The grouping includes the US, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, the UK, Australia and India. Each nation is expected to contribute“distinct strengths” across areas ranging from critical minerals and advanced manufacturing to semiconductor capability, AI innovation and deep industrial ecosystems, according to the US government.

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The US is the biggest market for India's auto component exports, accounting for just over a fourth of the country's $24 billion in total auto component exports in FY26. Indian exporters, however, faced steep US tariffs in 2025.

Goyal also defended India's 7.8% GDP growth for the April-June quarter, announced on 1 September, after a former senior government official and opposition parties questioned the robust rate of expansion. He said the growth rate reflected the efforts of 1.4 billion Indians.

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